Kyle (19-8-1, 1 NC, 3-3-1 SF) swept the scorecards by 29-28, 29-28
and 30-27 counts, as he won for the fifth time in six outings.

De Lima (8-1, 1-1 SF) spent much of the 15-minute bout moving
backwards, as Kyle attacked with straight punches and jabs. He also
landed a few timely takedowns and kept the Marco Barbosa protégé
off balance and unsure of himself. Kyle, the reigning King of
the Cage light heavyweight champion, opened a nasty lateral
gash on De Lima’s left eyelid with punches and elbows from inside
guard and remains a factor in Strikeforce’s
205-pound division.

‘Feijao’ Bounces Back, Finishes
Polacio

Former light heavyweight champion Rafael
“Feijao” Cavalcante wiped out 2000 Olympic Silver medalist Yoel
Romero Polacio in the second round of their preliminary 205-pound
tilt. In his first appearance since surrendering his title to
Dan
Henderson in March, Cavalcante (11-3, 4-2 SF) closed the
curtain 4:51 into round two.

A tepid round one in which Polacio (4-1, 0-1 SF) was warned for
inactivity gave way to an action-packed second. The Cuban wrestler
swarmed Cavalcante early in the period, but the experienced
Brazilian defended well, sheltered himself from the blows and
waited for an opportunity. He missed with a head kick but followed
with a spinning-back fist that had Polacio on wobbly legs. Punches
and elbows came next, as Polacio worked to get back to his feet.
Once there, he was met with a knee and a left hook and went
crashing back to the canvas. A brutal standing-to-ground punch from
Cavalcante polished off the prospect.

Mein Routs ‘Cyborg’ with Elbows

Jordan
Mein File Photo

Mein shocked "Cyborg" in round three.

Canadian welterweight prospect Jordan Mein
made a spectacular first impression in his Strikeforce debut, as he
walked through some stout low kicks from Evangelista
“Cyborg” Santos, outboxed the Brazilian and finished the former
title contender with a series of savage standing elbows 3:18 into
the third round.

Santos (18-15, 1-3 SF) was the aggressor from the outset, as he
unleashed his famed low kicks to great effect. However, his output
dropped drastically as the fight extended, and Mein (23-7, 1-0 SF)
took over with accurate punches, beautiful combinations and crisp
counters. The Canadian came out gunning in round three and landed a
crippling body shot that seemed to break the Brazilian’s will.

He followed up with punches, backed him into the fence and let
loose with the elbows. Blood was spilled, and the referee
intervened.

Davis Stops Nunes in Second

Raging Wolf champion Alexis
Davis stopped
AMA Fight Club representative Amanda
Nunes on second-round punches in a preliminary women’s
welterweight matchup. The end came with a mere seven seconds
remaining in round two.

Davis (11-4, 2-0 SF) grinded down Nunes from the clinch and, while
she ate her share of punches, tired the Brazilian in close
quarters. Nunes scored with a takedown in the second period, but
Davis transitioned immediately to the top, battered her with
ground-and-pound and moved to mount. Nunes (6-2, 1-1 SF)
surrendered her back in response and, without means to defend
herself, absorbed a series of unanswered punches from behind,
resulting in the stoppage. With that, her six-fight winning streak
was over.

Steele Hands Mierzwiak First Defeat

Takedowns, top control and ground-and-pound carried Dominique
Steele to his fourth consecutive victory in his promotional
debut, as he outpointed the previously unbeaten Chris
Mierzwiak by unanimous decision in a preliminary middleweight
bout. Scores were 29-28, 29-27 and 29-27.

Steele (4-1, 1-0 SF) weathered a rough start that included a
first-round knockdown and leaned on his superior conditioning as
the fight deepened. Mierzwiak (3-1, 0-1 SF) slowed visibly in round
two and appeared completely spent in the third. He had trouble
staying on his feet, went down on the end of a straight right hand
and, outside of a handful of submission attempts, mustered little
offense of note over the final 10 minutes.